This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
In the automotive industry, for example, many thousands of different mass produced parts are furnished to the automobile manufacturer from a plurality of first-tier and second-tier suppliers. The automobile manufacturer will typically require each supplier to conform to its purchase order protocols, which dictate how parts of a specific designation are pulled into the supply chain as needed. While the automobile manufacturer has a great deal of control over the supply chain, each individual supplier still maintains some control and flexibility as to how parts are engineered, manufactured and supplied pursuant to the automobile manufacturer's required specifications.
The automotive industry prides itself on continuously improving not only the products it manufactures but also the process by which those products are manufactured. However, because the automotive vehicle is so complex, there can be literally thousands of improvements pending at any given time. Some of these improvements find their way into a current model year production; other improvements may be deferred until a later model year. The approval process is often quite complex, with many different review entities each providing a different level of approval before the improved part can be released for production.
Networked computer systems are used today to mediate the way parts are manufactured and supplied to the automobile manufacturer. Each supplier that deals directly with the automobile manufacturer typically employs a computer-implemented database system that maintains a record of all parts that are approved for production. This database system may be configured to communicate directly with a counterpart computer-implemented database system at the automobile manufacturer. In other cases inter-company communication is effected using paper documents and/or telephone. When changes are made to a part, either at the request of the automobile manufacturer (as customer) or by the part manufacturer (as supplier) these respective database systems are synchronized through the applicable communication channel, so that both sides will have current information.
The database system is a key component of just-in-time manufacturing, as the information stored in the database controls how parts orders are fulfilled. In conventional practice, when changes need to be made to the data stored in the database, to update the purchase order to current pricing and other conditions, the information required to be changed is first manually curated through various levels of an company-internal approval processes. Only after all approvals have been given can the record in the database be updated. In other words, during the approval process, which can be lengthy and involved, the information stored in the database represents the state of the purchase order as it existed before the current changes were developed. This can cause problems for businesses, especially where pricing changes or other important specifications can occur frequently.